Chief Secretary for Administration

The chief secretary for administration is the second-highest government official in Hong Kong, right after the Chief Executive of Hong Kong. When the chief executive is on leave, the chief secretary for administration will act on their behalf.

The chief secretary for administration heads the Government Secretariat, which oversees the administration of the Region to which all other ministers belong. The chief secretary for administration reports to the chief executive and to the Legislative Council. Under Article 53 of the Basic Law, the position is constitutionally known as "Administrative Secretary".

The chief secretary formulates and implements government policy, gives advice to the Chief Executive as a member of the Executive Council, and is responsible for managing the Government's relationship with the Legislative Council and drawing up the Government's legislative programme. The office (“Department of Administration” per Article 60 of the Basic Law) also exercises certain statutory functions, such as the handling of appeals from designated public bodies.

Prior to the transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong in 1997, the office was known simply as "Chief Secretary" (), and before 27 August 1976, "Colonial Secretary"(). Until the introduction of the Principal Officials Accountability System in 2002, the Chief Secretary was a civil service position, and in this capacity, the head of the public service. In 2005, Henry Tang became the first person who has not been a civil servant to be appointed to the office of the chief secretary.

From the 1870s to 1902 the colonial secretary was the de facto lieutenant governor of Hong Kong which was once held by the commander of British Forces in Hong Kong before 1870s when the post was not lapsed from power. After 1902 the title disappeared from use as the second highest post was transferred to the colonial secretary and later, chief secretary.

List of chief secretaries of Hong Kong

Colonial secretaries, 1843–1941

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:left"

! width=10px| No.

! width=80px| Portrait

! width=180px| Name

! width=240px colspan=2| Term of office

! width=150px| Governor

! Ref

| 1

| 80px

| George Alexander Malcolm 麻恭

| 26 June 1843

| 29 August 1843

| rowspan=2|Sir Henry Pottinger

| rowspan=2| 2

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Sir Frederick Wright-Bruce 卜魯斯

| rowspan=2| 9 February 1844

| rowspan=2| 1846

| rowspan=2|Sir John Francis Davis

| rowspan=2| 3

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| William Caine 威廉·堅

| rowspan=2| 3 September 1846

| rowspan=2| 12 April 1854

| Sir George Bonham

| rowspan=3| 4

| rowspan=3| 80px

| rowspan=3| William Thomas Mercer 孖沙

| rowspan=3| 13 April 1854

| rowspan=3| 14 May 1867

| Sir John Bowring

| Sir Hercules Robinson

| rowspan=2| Sir Richard MacDonnell

| rowspan=3| 5

| rowspan=3| 80px

| rowspan=3| John Gardiner Austin 柯士甸

| rowspan=3| 7 May 1868

| rowspan=3| 4 April 1878

| Sir Arthur Kennedy

| rowspan=2| Sir John Pope Hennessy

| rowspan=2| 6

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| William Henry Marsh 馬師

| rowspan=2| 3 January 1879

| rowspan=2| 10 June 1887

| Sir George Bowen

| 7

| 80px

| Frederick Stewart 史釗域

| 5 October 1887

| 6 October 1889

| rowspan=2| Sir William Des Voeux

| rowspan=2| 8

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Francis Fleming 菲林明

| rowspan=2| 17 January 1890

| rowspan=2| 26 February 1892

| rowspan=3| Sir William Robinson

| 9

| 80px

| G. T. M. O'Brien 柯布連

| 11 March 1892

| 30 April 1894

| rowspan=2| 10

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Sir Stewart Lockhart 駱克

| rowspan=2| 26 March 1895

| rowspan=2| 23 April 1902

| rowspan=2| Sir Henry Arthur Blake

| rowspan=3| 11

| rowspan=3|

| rowspan=3| Sir Francis Henry May 梅含理

| rowspan=3| 14 May 1902

| rowspan=3| 30 April 1911

| Sir Matthew Nathan

| rowspan=3| Sir Frederick Lugard

| 12

| alt=|80px

| Warren Delabere Barnes 班士

| 7 June 1911

| 28 October 1911

| rowspan=3| 13

| rowspan=3|

| rowspan=3| Sir Claud Severn 施勳

| rowspan=3| 22 February 1912

| rowspan=3| 14 November 1925

| Sir Francis Henry May

| Sir Reginald Stubbs

| rowspan=3| 14

| rowspan=3| 80px

| rowspan=3| Sir Thomas Southorn 修頓

| rowspan=3| 1 May 1926

| rowspan=3| 23 March 1936

| Sir Cecil Clementi

| Sir William Peel

| rowspan=2| Sir Andrew Caldecott

| rowspan=3| 15

| rowspan=3| 80px

| rowspan=3| Norman Lockhart Smith 史美

| rowspan=3| 26 November 1936

| rowspan=3| 8 December 1941

| Sir Geoffry Northcote

| rowspan=2| Sir Mark Aitchison Young

| 16

| 80px

| Sir Franklin Gimson 詹遜

| 8 December 1941

| 25 December 1941

Colonial secretaries, 1946–1976

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:left"

! width=10px| No.

! width=80px| Portrait

! width=180px| Name

! width=180px colspan=2| Term of office

! width=80px | Duration

! width=160px| Governor

! Ref

| rowspan=2| 17

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| David Mercer MacDougall 麥道高

| rowspan=2| 1 May 1946

| rowspan=2| 11 May 1949

| rowspan=2|

| Sir Mark Aitchison Young

| rowspan=2|

| rowspan=4| Sir Alexander Grantham

| 18

| 80px

| John Fearns Nicoll 列誥

| 25 May 1949

| 23 January 1952

| 19

| 80px

| Sir Robert Brown Black 柏立基

| 20 February 1952

| 30 March 1955

| rowspan=2| 20

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Edgeworth Beresford David 戴維德

| rowspan=2| 4 May 1955

| rowspan=2| 24 January 1958

| rowspan=2|

| rowspan=3| Sir Robert Brown Black

| 21

| 80px

| Claude Bramall Burgess 白嘉時

| 24 January 1958

| 10 March 1963

| rowspan=2| 22

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Edmund Brinsley Teesdale 戴斯德

| rowspan=2| 11 March 1963

| rowspan=2| 28 March 1965

| rowspan=2|

| rowspan=3| Sir David Trench

| 23

| 80px

| Sir Michael Gass 祈濟時

| 4 September 1965

| 22 January 1969

| rowspan=2| 24

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Sir Hugh Norman-Walker 羅樂民

| rowspan=2| 29 March 1969

| rowspan=2| 29 September 1973

| rowspan=2|

| rowspan=2| Sir Murray MacLehose

| 25

| 80px

| Sir Denys Roberts 羅弼時

| 30 September 1973

| 26 August 1976

| 80px

| Sir Jack Cater 姬達

| 3 October 1978

| 19 November 1981

| rowspan="2" | 3

| rowspan="2" | 80px

| rowspan="2" | Sir Philip Haddon-Cave 夏鼎基

| rowspan="2" | 20 November 1981

| rowspan="2" | 9 June 1985

| rowspan="2" |

|rowspan=2|Sir Edward Youde

| 4

| 80px

| Sir David Akers-Jones 鍾逸傑

| 10 June 1985

| 11 February 1987

|rowspan=2| 5

|rowspan=2| 80px

|rowspan=2| Sir David Robert Ford 霍德

|rowspan=2| 12 February 1987

|rowspan=2| 28 November 1993

|rowspan=2|

|Sir David Wilson

|rowspan=2|

|rowspan=2| Chris Patten

| 6

| 80px

| Anson Chan 陳方安生

| 29 November 1993

| 30 June 1997

| rowspan=2 style="background:" align=center|7

| rowspan=2| 80px

| rowspan=2| Matthew Cheung Kin-chung 張建宗

| rowspan=2| 16 January 2017

| rowspan=2| 25 June 2021

| rowspan=2|

| rowspan=2| Carrie Lam

| rowspan=2 align=center| 5

| rowspan=1 style="background:" align=center|8

| rowspan=1| 80px

| rowspan=1| John Lee Ka-chiu 李家超

| rowspan=1| 25 June 2021

| rowspan=1| 7 April 2022

| rowspan=1|

| rowspan=1 style="background:" align=center|9

| rowspan=1| 80px

| rowspan=1| Eric Chan Kwok-ki 陳國基

| rowspan=1| 1 July 2022

| rowspan=1| Incumbent

| rowspan=1|

| rowspan=1| John Lee

| rowspan=1 align=center| 6

Residence

right|thumb|200px|Victoria House, 15 Barker Road, Hong Kong.

The Chief Secretary resides at an official residence at 15 Barker Road, The Peak, Hong Kong, which is also known as Victoria House and Victoria Flats.

References

;General

;Specific

External links

Official website
Organisation chart of Hong Kong Government

List of chief secretaries of Hong Kong

Colonial secretaries, 1843–1941

Colonial secretaries, 1946–1976

Residence

See also

References

External links